Moving on now.
I thought I would share why I feel this way right now. Sunday night we were honored to be able to attend the sweetest Christmas musical I have ever been to. It was at our church, and it was all done by kids. It was led by an amazingly talented lady, and the only people in it were kids. Not kids that had perfect voices, or who looked a certain way. Not kids that were hired so that it would be more "perfect". But just precious, simple, everyday, kids.
And two of mine were in it.
Jonah and Noah have never been in an all (and only) kids program. I have to be honest and tell you that they were not thrilled with the prospect of this...but at my prodding, they toughed it out. And by the time Sunday night rolled around, they were so excited about being in it. They were even more excited at all the family that came to see them. We are so blessed to live near family and all these grandparents. With the exception of Mimi, they were all in attendance. (She couldn't come because of the Christmas program at her church.)
I will also admit that I cried through the majority of it. Several little girls sang so beautifully that I was blinking furiously to keep the tears from falling. They still fell, though. I couldn't help it. It was so sweet and pure, and it was from their hearts. Hearts with nothing in mind but spreading the love of Jesus. They weren't focused on perfection and whether or not everything went without any glitches. They focused only on Who mattered the most...and He was glorified during their performance. They were all singing for Him.
The other reason I feel so blessed is that tonight I got to cook dinner for one of the sweetest men I know. Well, actually Graham did the majority of the cooking, but I helped. Today is my sweet stepdad's birthday. Bill is so much more than just a stepdad. He is caregiver, brother, son, chef, friend, husband, Dad and Big Daddy. I am so thankful for the day that my mom met him. Our lives were forever changed that day...and only for the good.
He takes care of my mom. He cooks most of their meals. He provides...not only for Mom and him, but for others. There were times when we didn't know where our next medical bill payment was going to come from, and he came to the rescue. He loves our boys in a way that only he can...and it is mutual. He cooks them their favorite meals, and has almost once a week since they were babies. We've eaten with them weekly since the week after we returned from our honeymoon...it's something we've always enjoyed, and the time we spend with him and Mom is priceless.
Bill was told one time by a complete stranger, that Noah looked just like him...there was no denying HIS grandson. :) He shares his food with them...like the time when Drew told him, "Big Daddy, dip that sandwich in that gravy and give me another bite." (He was eating a French dip from McAllister's.) He just shared the nacho's from there the other night after the children's program. And I'm pretty sure he always gives Drew the better half.
He finally got smart and stopped asking Drew what he wanted in restaurants...and just started ordering him whatever he ordered himself. Like shrimp scampi. Or salmon. Or steak. Yes, he has introduced them all to those lovely expensive foods.
He has been around for meltdowns (mine and the kids), he has seen Todd mad when his team lost, happy when they won, he's witnessed Drew almost falling down a mountain, he's traveled with all of my kids for hours on end, and he's heard them all snore. Or sing in their sleep. Ahem, Jonah.
He has filled in the gaps for me on many occasions in school...like when Todd is either out of town or unable to come to a special event that requires dads.
Saying we appreciate and love him don't do this man justice. But we do. We are blessed to have him in our family. He makes us proud. We are truly blessed. I thank God for him.
Bill, if you're reading this, "Rawr means"...well, you know. We do.
:)
I am proud to call this wonderful man, my brother. I love him so much and have dealt him so much misery when we were younger. Don't know if he has ever forgiven his three sisters for how we mistreated him. But any one of us would fight to the death for him--we love him so much. Also, I am so glad that he found Geraldine and her wonderful family. I just wish that we were closer to all of you. I love spending time with you and your family--the boys are precious and remind me of our four boys. Thanks for writing this blog on my brother, Bill Garrison. Marti
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